An exciting email!
26th August
Hi Liz and John......
Julia was getting in touch to let us know that they had revisited our feasibility for the show and that some lovely properties had come up in Argyll and Bute, and would we be available for filming to start on 12th September? And were we around for a couple of hours on Tuesday for a chat, via Teams, to go through our story and house search?
Damn - I knew I should have gone on that crash diet!
We mentioned a little while back in the blog that Liz speculatively applied to a UK daytime TV show called Escape To The Country. For those that don't watch the programme it's really quite compelling viewing and pretty self explanatory.
The 'contributors', usually a couple, are presented a number of properties that the team have found for them, hopefully matching their requirements. There's quite a nice introduction to the programme talking about why the couple want to 'escape' and what they are looking for in their dream house. The episode also brings in some nice insights about the location the couple are looking to move to by walking round a local town or tourist spot. The last house presented to the couple is called the 'mystery house' and has often a slightly different twist on their wish-list but often hits the bullseye.
So at the end of an intense week (see previous post about Liz's 'dream home' and John's 'Nightmare on Elmstreet' coming back from the grave) the week ended with the e-mail from Julia saying they had a slot, with a view to filming in two and a half weeks, were we up for it? Gulp.
We replied instantly - yes we're up for it, and over the weekend a time was arranged for a more in-depth (2 hours) Teams call on the Tuesday. For those that haven't gone through a TV screening process, there's all the boring stuff (criminal convictions, offering an in-house therapist for those who suffer negative social media following the screening (!) etc) but also some more probing into who you are and basically validating that you're not a complete time waster. John was a little restless (well, he was supposed to be at work) but Liz enjoyed it immensely and Julia was an absolute gem. But it's all part of the process and, at the end of the day, the production company and their staff survive by making good telly, so we get it.
The call was recorded for the purposes of selling it to the producers. The questions ranged from what our current jobs were, and all previous jobs, to where we lived and everywhere we have ever lived, how we met, why we wanted to move and a host of other things. We ended up sitting in the showroom at Fox Windows and Doors where Liz works, with the interview sandwiched between sessions of actual work. It was wrapped up by a request to NOT look at any more properties on line for the next two weeks - so that anything they show us while filming should be a surprise. That way they get the best reactions.
After that call, the next step was a visit to our home to do some background filming about where we live on the following Monday afternoon. Gosh, the process happens really fast once they decide to move!
We were surprised at how low key this was; Julia and Lucy turning up in a car, with just a tripod and a fancy camera not much bigger than an old style camcorder! We filmed a number of 'staged' scenes including a little picnic blanket lovey-dovey moment, with a flask of tea, at Chesterton Windmill, one of the beauty spots near where we live, and us standing at the front of our house, with Lucy the cat.
The weirdest clip is the 'wishlist shot'. For this we wait behind the front door until Julia shouted 'action', then we open the door, walk out and stand by the front door and chit chat for 60 seconds (we can say anything we like, which inevitably ended up with us taking the mickey out of each other and feeling a bit awkward, which is why the couples are always laughing in these shots) and then go back inside and shut the door behind us. We thought it was really sweet with Lucy sat on the wall outside the house as we stroked her while we chit chatted. But Julia asked us to do that take again because apparently Lucy looked really confused when we left her to go back inside. So we shooed her off and did take 2 sans cat.
We hadn't realised it, but this was also a further 'qualification' process and guess that some people just wouldn't either behave or cope with the process. As Julia and Lucy left they confirmed that they would be recommending that we were put forward for the full filming starting a week later, in Scotland!
Liz: I got a quick call the next day from Eleanor, who was the researcher for the next stage and she asked for a quick Teams call to introduce the production team later that day. I texted John to rally him back to the Fox office at 4.30pm. We said hi to Eleanor, Owen and Nicola, who all seemed very nice, and they promised us further details of where to be, and when, by the end of the week.
So that was it, the logistics were confirmed late on Friday night, when we received the 'call sheet' by email. Apart from the weather forecast, the crew's contact details and the nearby food sources, all we knew was that we needed to check into the Brander Lodge hotel near Oban and be available for filming to start 11am next Tuesday through to mid-afternoon on the Thursday. The rest would be a surprise!
The episode airs on Monday 23rd January at 3pm BBC1! Please be kind....... :/
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